Deck vs Apple Keynote.
Apple Keynote is a free presentation app from Apple; Deck is a $19 one-time purchase for the Mac. This page compares price, file formats and features.
| Feature | Deck | Apple Keynote |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $19 once | Free; extras $12.99/mo |
| Pay once | Yes | –free app |
| Opens and saves .pptx directly | Yes | Partlysaves by export |
| Works offline | Yes | Yes |
| No account | Yes | PartlyiCloud to share |
| Every command open to a local AI agent | Yes | PartlyAppleScript, Shortcuts |
| Animations | No | Yes |
| Presenter view | No | Yes |
| Platforms | Mac | Mac, iPhone, iPad, web |
| Minimum macOS | macOS 14 | macOS 26 |
| Native file format | .pptx | Keynote format |
| Real-time collaboration | No | Yes |
Yes Yes Partly Partly No No
Price
Keynote is free on the App Store, and creating, editing and collaborating in it need no subscription. An optional Apple Creator Studio subscription adds premium content and intelligence features to Keynote at $12.99 a month or $129 a year. Deck costs $19 once, tax included, covering up to 3 of your Macs with every future update included, and refunds are available within 30 days.
File formats
Keynote’s native format is its own, and a .pptx is made through File > Export To > PowerPoint, which creates a separate copy. Deck uses .pptx as its native file format and opens and saves it directly with its own reader and writer. A deck saved by Deck keeps its slides, layouts, text, tables, pictures, notes, theme and transitions.
Where Apple Keynote is ahead
- Keynote is free.
- It has object animations and slide transitions, including Magic Move.
- Its presenter display shows the current slide, the next slide, notes, a clock and a timer.
- People can edit a shared presentation at the same time through iCloud, including in a browser.
- It runs on iPhone, iPad and Apple Vision as well as the Mac.
Try Deck free for 7 days.
Then $19 once, for up to 3 of your Macs. No subscription and no account.
Requires macOS 14 Sonoma or later.
More comparisons
Sources
Checked against Apple Keynote’s own website and documentation on 13 November 2026. If something here is out of date, tell us and we’ll correct it.
- Keynote on the App Store
- Apple Creator Studio
- Apple Creator Studio features in Keynote
- Apple Support article 125029 (Apple Creator Studio)
- Open or close a presentation in Keynote on Mac
- Export to PowerPoint or another file format in Keynote on Mac
- Present on a separate display in Keynote on Mac
- Intro to collaboration in Keynote on Mac
- What’s new in Keynote
- Keynote Support
- Keynote User Guide for Mac
Keynote is a trademark of Apple Inc. Deck is not affiliated with it.